Meghna Gulzar has built a reputation for telling stories that are rooted in difficult realities, often placing audiences inside morally complicated situations rather than offering easy answers. Her upcoming crime thriller Daayra continues that tradition, revolving around the aftermath of a brutal crime and the conflicting ideas of justice that emerge from it. But while viewers experience the emotional weight of such stories on screen, Gulzar says she has learnt to temporarily distance herself from the material while filming it.
In an interview with Filmfare, the filmmaker opened up about the emotional toll of working on stories involving violence and crime. Daayra, starring Kareena Kapoor Khan and Prithviraj Sukumaran, explores the aftermath of a young woman’s rape and murder and the controversial police encounter that follows. The film draws from multiple real-life incidents rather than being based on one specific case.
For Gulzar, the subject matter can be particularly difficult because she approaches it not only as a filmmaker but also as a woman and a mother. Yet she has found a way to compartmentalise those emotions when she is on set.
How Meghna Gulzar switches off while filming
Gulzar explained that she has developed what she describes as an internal switch that allows her to stop reacting emotionally to the material while she is directing it.
“I think there is a switch inside me which when turned on switches me off from reacting to the material, as a woman or as a mother who has a daughter.”
The filmmaker said she first became conscious of this mechanism while making Talvar, her 2015 investigative drama inspired by the Aarushi Talwar murder case. The process of filming disturbing scenes required her to focus on the technical aspects of filmmaking instead of allowing the subject matter to overwhelm her.
“I had got this realization while making Talvar because the type of scenes I was filming were heart swaying. For me it was about continuity, technicality, timing, dialogue, placement, positioning. I was not paying attention to the content which was being filmed.”
Gulzar described this emotional detachment as an instinctive form of protection that enables her to function while dealing with deeply unsettling material.
“It is almost like an armour that you have which comes on subconsciously because you also have to function.”
The emotions return after the film is complete
While this detachment helps Gulzar navigate the filmmaking process, she admits that the emotions do not disappear. Instead, they can return with greater force once the work is finished and she no longer has the practical demands of a film set to occupy her mind.
The director recalled experiencing this after completing Talvar, when she finally began processing the emotional weight of the story she had spent months working on.
“After the film is directed and the movie releases, that is when weight of those scenes is experienced. I know it happened after Talvar. I did not sleep for three to four months because I started processing the film after it released.”
Gulzar expects Daayra to have a similar effect on her. She knows that the material will eventually catch up with her, but she says she cannot afford to let that happen while she is still responsible for bringing the film together.
“I know that will happen here as well. I don’t have the luxury of letting it happen to me while I am on set.”
Daayra marks Gulzar’s return to the investigative crime space after Talvar and brings together Kareena Kapoor Khan and Prithviraj Sukumaran as senior police officers who find themselves on opposing sides of a complicated case. Rather than presenting a straightforward battle between right and wrong, the film explores the grey areas between law, justice, morality and public perception.
The film is scheduled to release in theatres on September 18. With Daayra, Gulzar once again appears to be examining the institutions and individuals caught between an emotionally charged crime and the complicated pursuit of justice.
Also Read: Daayra trailer: 22 striking stills ft. Kareena Kapoor Khan, Prithviraj Sukumaran, Kshitee Jog & more
By
By
